Showgirls (1995)

Nomi, a young drifter, arrives in Las Vegas to become a dancer and soon sets about clawing and pushing her way to become the top of the Vegas showgirls.

Director:

Paul Verhoeven (as Jan Jansen)

Writer:

Joe Eszterhas

Stars:

Elizabeth Berkley, Kyle MacLachlan, Gina Gershon

10 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Elizabeth Berkley	...	Nomi Malone
Kyle MacLachlan	...	Zack Carey
Gina Gershon	...	Cristal Connors
Glenn Plummer	...	James Smith
Robert Davi	...	Al Torres
Alan Rachins	...	Tony Moss
Gina Ravera	...	Molly Abrams
Lin Tucci	...	Henrietta 'Mama' Bazoom
Greg Travis	...	Phil Newkirk
Al Ruscio	...	Mr. Karlman
Patrick Bristow	...	Marty Jacobsen
William Shockley	...	Andrew Carver
Bobbie Phillips	...	Dee
Dewey Weber	...	Jeff
Rena Riffel	...	Penny / Hope

Storyline

Nomi Malone, a mysterious young girl with the ambition to dance embarks on a journey to Las Vegas to become a showgirl in a high-class hotel show. There she meets Molly, a seamstress at the Stardust Hotel and the two quickly become good friends. She gets a job as a lap dancer at the seedy Cheetah Club but after a chance meeting with Cristal Connors, the star of Goddess, the current show at the hotel where Molly works, Nomi manages to secure an audition for a spot on the chorus line.However she soon realises that fame comes with a price as her friendships, her morals and her soul are put to the test as she works her way up the ladder and eventually becomes the star of the show, stealing Cristal's part. She begins to wonder if all of her work was for nothing and if she can reclaim her life back before it is too late.

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Plot Keywords:

lap dancing | stripper | sex in a swimming pool | breasts | cult film | 

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Taglines:

The side of Vegas you were never mean't to see.

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated NC-17 for nudity and erotic sexuality throughout, and for some graphic language and sexual violence

Details

Country:

France USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 September 1995 (USA)

Also Known As:

Coristas

Filming Locations:

Carson City, Nevada, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$45,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$8,112,627, 24 September 1995, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$20,302,961

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$37,702,961

Company Credits

Production Co:

Carolco Pictures,Chargeurs,United Artists

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min 131 min (NC-17)

Sound Mix:

DTS-Stereo Dolby SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In a 2013 interview, Paul Verhoeven explained his motives for doing the movie. He did not like Joe Eszterhas's initial script, and passed on the project in favor of doing "Crusade", based on a screenplay by Walon Green and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. However, that project fell through when Carolco Pictures could not afford to finance both "Crusade" and Cutthroat Island (1995). Since 10 million dollar had already been spent on "Crusade", and Eszterhas already received 4 million dollar for his Showgirls screenplay, Verhoeven felt morally obligated to do Showgirls as a personal favor to Mario Kassar to save Carolco from bankruptcy. Eszterhas' screenplay was extensively re-written with All About Eve (1950) as the main source of inspiration. Verhoeven intended it to be an over-the-top morality tale, populated with only amoral characters (except for the character of Molly (Gina Ravera), with Las Vegas as a metaphor for hypocrisy and extortion. However, the satirical intentions were not picked up by the critics, who regarded the movie as a simplistic portrayal of American culture, and the box office failure of both this movie and 'Cutthroat Island' made the bankruptcy of Carolco inevitable.

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Goofs

During the infamous pool-sex scene, there are several shots in which it can be plainly seen that Kyle MacLachlan is still wearing white underwear.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Jeff: Hop in, pard!
Nomi Malone: Where are you going?
Jeff: Vegas! Come on! This is your lucky day!

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Connections

Referenced in Film '72: Episode dated 19 February 2014 (2014)

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Soundtracks

Somebody New
Written and Performed by My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult
Courtesy of Interscope Records

User Reviews

Enthralling, and not bad at all

I'm glad I didn't turn this off 20 minutes in, thinking that it was basically what I'd heard and expected. Despite all the early embarrassing missteps and clunky lines delivered by Ms Berkeley, the film actually grew into an experience that I didn't want to turn off. It's ten times as good as Striptease.

It's not Citizen Kane, but it's not a soft-core porn version of Rock Star (awful film) either. Most of the characters were well-developed and believable, even it the situations were not. And there's plenty of humor, the vast majority of it intentional.

I'm wondering if most of the heavy derision of the film comes from Puritanical attitudes, rather than from an honest evaluation. If unromanticized sex and heavy nudity -- literally, in the case of one character -- make you (or your viewing companions) uncomfortable, Showgirls probably not for you.

I enjoyed it and would watch it again.